Nipped Nap
by Mandy of the Amoeba
Summary: Ever wonder about the...odd pairings that happen during the catnap portion of the Jellicle Ball? Well, this is my explanation of one such pairing....
1. Nipped Nap: The Dangers of Catnip

A/N: I found this stored away on my computer today.....I had almost forgotten about it! This is one of the earliest Cats fics I wrote, although it's not THE earliest. The earliest one STILL isn't finished....it's not that long, but I've never been able to come up with a suitable ending. Anyway....enjoy! The first part of this is from Jenny's POV, the second...well, you'll see.....*g*  
  
  
  
Nipped Nap: The dangers of catnip  
  
  
  
Jennyanydots sat on top of the old Ford with several other cats the night of the Jellicle Ball, watching Bombalurina and her friends dancing. The Gumbie sighed, fondly remembering a time when she danced during the highlight of the Ball...trying to catch the eye of a certain orange tomcat....ah, yes, those were the days.  
  
Chuckling slightly, she poured herself a cup of tea from a pot that was sitting on some junk between the tire and the car, never noticing the paw that reached from the tire and poured a bag of something green and powdery into the pot. Taking a sip of the tea, Jenny looked at it, slightly surprised. "Wonder if Jelly's using a new recipe…" she mused to herself, drinking the rest of the cup. She look at the pot skeptically for a moment, then poured herself another cup. And another. And another.  
  
Halfway through the fifth cup, she hazily noticed Skimbleshanks on the ground below near the back of the car, motioning for her to come down and join him. She slid off the car slowly, nearly losing her balance a few times, then sat down on the bumper. Skimble joined the other cats dancing after a moment, expecting his mate to follow. Jenny started to get up and dance with them, but the world was starting to get slightly fuzzy, and she was having more and more difficulty standing up straight, so she remained on the car bumper.  
  
From his place with the other cats, Pouncival watched his mother out of the corner of his eye, snickering as he tossed an empty bag marked "CATNIP" behind a junkpile. "The Gumbie Cat, getting 'nipped. Guess she can't reprimand us anymore; she's in the same boat as Tugger and his friends!" the young adult thought to himself, grinning slyly.  
  
It was true. Jennyanydots was as nipped, if not more so, than Tugger and his buddies. It wouldn't really pose that much of a problem; all the Jellicles were getting ready for the catnap they always took in the middle of the Ball, and with a little luck, no one would realize she'd been at the catnip. Jenny yawned and rolled over, half falling off the car bumper. She was semiconscious of the fact she was rolling around on the ground with another cat, but before she could try and decipher who it was, she had passed out on the ground with the rest of the sleeping Jellicles.  
  
After a few minutes, all of the cats were awoken by Mistoffelees, Coricopat, and Tantomile alerting them of Grizabella sneaking around the Junkyard. Crawling to her feet, Jenny stumbled to the tire and sat there a moment, not really aware of what was going on around her, before crawling under the car and falling asleep.  
  
(A short time later....)  
  
"Psst, Jenny! Wake up!" a voice hissed. Opening her eyes, Jenny saw her friend Jellylorum trying to shake her awake. "What the….oh, my head…" the queen muttered, holding her head in one paw.   
  
"Grizabella's come back again..... we've got to keep the kittens away from her, I don't want my daughters being wrongly influenced!" Jelly said, pulling the other queen to her feet. They confronted Grizabella for a moment, then dragged Jemima and Victoria away from the faded Glamour cat and ran off behind a junkpile.  
  
Jenny had become fully awake, and the recent events started coming back to her. She remembered rolling around on the ground with another cat……a tom, in fact….a sleek black tom, with a mane….."Oh dear Heaviside!" she half screamed.   
  
Jelly, by nature a jumpy, nervous queen, jumped a full foot in the air. "Jenny, what is it? What's wrong?"  
  
The Gumbie's eyes were wide in horror. "I….I….I…." she spluttered, shaking her head.   
  
"You what, dearie?" Jelly cried, exasperated.  
  
Face pale with disbelief, Jenny managed to gasp out, "I spent the catnap with Tugger!"  
  
  



	2. Nipped Nap: Why It's Better to Stick wit...

  
  
  
Nipped Nap: Why it's better to stick with one queen....  
  
  
  
It was the night of the Jellicle Ball. Tugger stood watching Bombalurina dance, studying her carefully. She looked REALLY good out there now....of course....so did all the other queens....and some of the toms, too....wait, no, that's not right. He had to admit, he had taken a little too much catnip, but hey, he was the Tugger! He could handle it! He could handle anything.....including the saucy red queen dancing in front of him.....Stepping out on the dance floor, he paired up with Bombalurina and danced a bit before carrying her away and setting the red queen down by the tire.  
  
Next to him, Alonzo laughed, a slightly high-pitched, giggling laugh. He'd had more catnip than he needed, as well, but there was no harm in getting 'nipped during the Ball. After all, it was a time of celebration! Still laughing for no apparent reason, the black and white tom offered Tugger another bag of the stuff, which was accepted and digested quickly.  
  
The music was beginning to slow down, a sure sign that the catnap that traditionally took place in the middle of the Ball was nearing quickly. Tugger looked around at the various queens who weren't paired off yet, his drunken state of mind making them all look a lot better than he normally would have thought. He caught sight of a queen near the Ford that looked even more 'nipped than he was, and he smiled slyly to himself. "There's one I haven't had…" he thought, sliding his way over to the queen. They rolled around on the ground for a few minutes before falling asleep next to each other.  
  
(Not long after that....)  
  
Tugger woke up in a slightly more reasonable state than he'd fallen asleep in. Suddenly, he realized just WHO he was curled up next to, and recoiled in horror. He quickly got up and resumed dancing with the other cats, trying to take his mind off what just happened. The dance ended, and then Grizabella appeared out of the corner of the Yard. Strutting past her, Tugger went off to join his friend Mistoffelees.   
  
Frowning slightly, Misto nudged Tugger. "Hey….you seem awfully crabby, Mr. Curious Cat. What's your prob?"   
  
"You wanna know what my problem is? I'll tell you. I just spent the catnap with Jennyanydots." Tugger replied flatly.  
  
Bombalurina was standing nearby and heard Tugger's last remark. Seething, she stormed over and slapped him smartly across the face. "YOU CAD!" she yelled, before turning on her heel and marching away.  
  
Rubbing his injured cheek, Tugger sighed and shook his head. "Queens....can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em."  
  
  



End file.
